’No, I cannot!’ Feng cried inwardly, his chest rising and falling as panic surged through him.
His knuckles were white as he gripped the bone spear Elyon had given him.
Cold mist rose from the snow-packed ground, and before him, half-hidden among the trees, a group of frost monkeys glared at him with piercing, crystal-blue eyes.
Their teeth were chattering in fury.
Feng’s throat bobbed.
He had been wrong.
Entirely wrong.
Just yesterday, when Azel mentioned that he would begin real training, Feng had thought back to the sect manuals.
He remembered the beasts described in those dusty tomes — docile spirit beasts that had only barely touched qi, creatures so weak that they were mostly used for introductory hunts.
’Those I can handle,’ he had told himself confidently.
But these?
His trembling hands betrayed him as he stared at the monkeys. The air around them crackled with mana, visible frost condensing on the bark where they clung.
These were no mere spirit beasts.
These were monsters — true monsters with crystallized mana cores thrumming in their chests.
They radiated raw, suffocating energy. Each one of them felt as if it could tear him limb from limb without hesitation.
"What are you waiting for?"
The voice was calm.
Azel’s crimson eyes gleamed from where he leaned lazily against the trunk of an ancient pine, his long silver hair fluttering faintly in the wind.
He wore his dark fur coat loosely, one hand tucked in his pocket, the other holding a roasted fish that he ate without concern.
He looked like he was picnicking, not supervising life-and-death combat.
"Or are you waiting for them to stand around and politely kill you?" he added, raising an eyebrow.
Feng swallowed hard. His master’s tone made it sound as though this was a simple spar.
’Easy for you to say... you’re untouchable.’
One of the frost monkeys screeched and bounded forward, its claw-like nails glowing faintly with icy mana. Feng’s instincts screamed.
He stumbled backward, the snow crunching loudly under his boots. At the last moment, he thrust his spear forward and leapt back, just as the monkey’s slash tore through where his chest had been.
A violent gust of snow erupted upward.
His breath was ragged, but his eyes widened.
He wasn’t as frail as before.
His body... it had changed.
His muscles had firmed, and though he was still thin, he was no longer the half-starved, bony disciple who had once been forbidden from even wielding a practice blade in his sect.
’I’ve really grown stronger...’ he thought, forcing air into his lungs. The ambient mana in this world was feeding him constantly, his malnourished frame now replaced by something sturdier.
He could grip the spear in both hands with confidence.
But confidence wasn’t the same as courage.
The monkeys were still monsters.
Their cores thrummed with mana greater than his own. He knew it. His legs knew it — they were shaking.
Still, if he didn’t try now, he would never move forward.
"Stop shaking and move!" Azel barked sharply.
Feng bit down on his lip hard enough to taste iron. His fear turned into reckless momentum.
He lunged.
The spear thrust out like lightning. It pierced straight into the charging monkey’s head. The beast shrieked, claws flailing wildly, raking against Feng’s arm.
Pain flared, but Feng roared and shoved forward with every ounce of strength. With a wet crack, the spear drove clean through, destroying the frost monkey’s skull.
For a moment there was silence. Then —
A flood of mana burst out from the beast’s collapsing body and surged into Feng. His entire being shuddered, his dantian trembling violently as blue light pooled within him.
His veins burned like fire as strength poured into his limbs.
The sensation was intoxicating.
Feng’s knees nearly buckled from the sheer ecstasy of it. His malnourished frame drank in the energy greedily, filling cracks he hadn’t known were there.
Azel’s eyes narrowed slightly.
’So it’s true. He absorbs mana directly from kills.’ He thought, Feng still had that skill in the game... It only sucked mana when he killed demons or demonic beasts.
"Watch out, idiot!"
Feng snapped his head up just as another frost monkey lunged, its claws wreathed in icy mist.
It was too close!
He staggered back, but not enough. The beast’s claws slashed across his chest, tearing fabric and skin.
White-hot pain ripped through him, forcing him to double over. His vision blurred.
But desperation carried him.
He spun his spear clumsily but with determination, planting his foot in the snow and driving the weapon upward.
The spear pierced through the creature’s jaw, ripping into its skull. The frost monkey convulsed once before collapsing.
Another wave of mana flowed into him, his wound glowed faintly but it wasn’t from this mana.
The flesh that had been torn in both his hand and chest was knitting itself back together.
Feng gasped, staring in disbelief as he looked at Azel whose hand was covered in the same glow.
’Master can use healing arts too?’
Azel’s voice reached him again, firmer this time.
"Keep your eyes on the battle at all times. Don’t let your guard down until the last enemy lies dead."
"Yes, Master!" Feng shouted, adrenaline overriding fear. He turned toward the last two frost monkeys.
His legs felt like lead, but determination burned in his eyes. He rushed forward with a wild cry, spear raised high.
The monkeys, however, were not so easily cowed. One leapt aside, dodging the downward stab with insulting ease.
The other darted behind him, kicking his leg out from under him.
Feng yelped as he stumbled and then both monkeys pounced.
Snow flew into the air as the two frost monkeys landed squarely on his back. Their icy claws tore at his cloak and their screeches rang through the trees.
A third monkey, not quite dead yet, twitched violently and managed to grab at his ankle.
"AAAAH! GET OFF ME!" Feng wailed as he was buried under a pile of fur, claws, and ice.
The beasts began stomping on him repeatedly, screeching in victory as if mocking him. His spear slipped out of reach, half-buried in the snow.
From the sidelines, Azel pinched the bridge of his nose, his crimson eyes narrowing in exasperation.
"My god..." he muttered under his breath. The proud image of the "subordinate" he had vouched for was currently being used as a living doormat by a trio of monkeys.
"Master, help!" Feng cried, his muffled voice breaking as one monkey sat triumphantly on his head, beating its chest like a king.
Azel massaged his forehead with a long sigh.
’I was trying to build his confidence. Not bury him under monkeys.’
But was it his fault Feng had let his guard down?